Todd Dills

Driver makes Truckers Against Trafficking message his own

I’ve been working on some further reporting about the Truckers Against Trafficking organization lately — more and more, TAT seems to have gained traction among drivers, and plenty are hitting the issue head-on. Calls to the TAT hotline — 888-373-7888 — to report evidence of potential minors engaged in prostitution and/or evidence of pimp control out there have gotten more and more frequent, TAT reports, and conversation around the issue of domestic trafficking, typically a matter of coercion of young women into prostitution, is well on the rise.

And in addition to TAT’s own training materials and instructional videos of how to spot instances of trafficking and/or how to take anti-trafficking efforts on the road with you, some haulers have taken it upon themselves to create their own pleas for driver participation.

Coon not only made the video here, but he went on to encourage his carrier to get involved, asking them to “train all their drivers on TAT materials,” as TAT reported on their Facebook page a couple months back. “And they said, YES! We are sending materials out immediately. This is the power of the individual trucker who takes the next step in being a TAT! Thank you!”

I know the Truckers Against Trafficking folks hope many others follow this example, in addition to those who’ve already gone that extra mile. If you’ve personally come around to TAT’s efforts and/or participated in them yourself, drop a note here in the comments.

Todd Dills

Todd Dills is Senior Editor of Overdrive magazine and writes from Nashville, Tenn. He frequently covers business, regulatory and lifestyle topics for the magazine and at OverdriveOnline.com. His work on the “CSA’s Data Trail” series in Overdrive about the federal CSA program was awarded the highest honor in trade journalism – the “Grand Neal” – by American Business Media at the 2014 Jesse H. Neal Awards. Dills’ Channel 19 blog covers a grab bag of on-highway hearsay, owner-operator news and driver views from the roadways the nation over. His work in trucking journalism builds on a background of news feature, fiction and other creative writing and editing. Find him here at the Channel 19 blog and via his Twitter feed, or send tips to tdills@randallreilly.com or via phone at 205-907-2481.